At Palo Alto Glass we specialize in providing the final touches to your new or remodeled bathroom project. From standard framed shower doors to modern frameless units, we can supply you with the shower enclosure that best suits your needs.

Let’s look at the two basic types of enclosures. First, we have the more traditional sliding or swinging fully framed doors with 3/16” thick tempered safety glass. The frames are made of aluminum, and come anodized in many popular finishes to match your bath fixtures. The glass can either be clear or opaque, with many patterns to choose from. This style of enclosure is relatively inexpensive and offers several advantages:

low cost

glass is protected from abuse with aluminum framing (good for children’s baths)

panels are usually standard sizes making replacement inexpensive if required

Second, we have the very popular frameless glass type shower enclosure. This style enclosure makes up about 75% of our installations today. There is no frame wrapped around the glass panels; they are 3/8” or ½” thick tempered safety glass with only heavy brass hinges or clamps and silicone sealant holding them in place. As with framed type units the hardware can be finished to match your other fixtures and the glass will be clear, opaque or even etched with standard or custom designs. The frameless enclosure also offers certain advantages:

Back to glass for a minute. In the last few years there have been two important innovations that apply to both types of enclosure.

One is low-iron glass. This glass is manufactured with less lead than standard clear glass, and because of this has almost none of the green tint you would normally see. It is especially suited for showers that are light in color, because it won’t add that “greenish hue” common to standard glass. Low-iron glass commonly goes by trade names such as Starphire and Optic Clear, and will add about 20% to your shower door cost.

Another very popular innovation is coated glass. This glass has a coating that actually fills the pores in the glass making it almost impossible for soap and hard water deposits to stick. It doesn’t stop spots from showing – you should still use a squeegee for that! – but prevents them from etching into and ruining the glass. We use glass treated with Diamon-Fusion which makes hard water stains and calcium deposits less likely to stick to the glass, and easier to clean if they do stick.

Whether you choose traditional framed or the modern frameless style, Palo Alto Glass can make sure the end result meets – and exceeds – your expectations.

Call or email us for a quick quote or to set an appointment for a free estimate!